A homophobic heaven

The day after Christmas a post by a prominent Catholic priest on social media raised eyebrows. As Christians around the world celebrated the birth of our Lord and Savior, who came to earth for the salvation of mankind and spent his life urging people to repent of sins, one priest chose to promote a statement by Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu that, arguably, is heresy.

Tutu, during his life, promoted equality for all individuals and was a promote figure in working for LGBTQ rights in South Africa. Fr. James Martin SJ posted on social media a photo of Archbishop Tutu on December 26 and highlighted a statement Tutu said during a 2013 launching of an LGBTQ rights campaign in Cape Town, South Africa.

“I would not worship a God who is homophobic and that is how deeply I feel about this. I would refuse to go to a homophobic heaven. No, I would say sorry, I mean I would much rather go to the other place. I am as passionate about this campaign as I ever was about apartheid,” Tutu said in 2013.

The illusion Tutu attempts to give by making these statements is that God is homophobic because he calls LGBTQ acts and lifestyle a sin. That statement alone is pure heresy. It is heresy to believe and promote that God can sin and by saying God, or anyone or anything about heaven, is homophobic is to say God can and does commit sin by being homophobic. God is not homophobic, and heaven is certainly not in a state of homophobia.

God is what I call “sinophobic”. God cannot be around sin because of his holiness. God does not allow sin in heaven and Christ came to earth, was born on Christmas Day, with a mission to save us from our sins. He did not come to endorse our sins. He came to save us from sin and urge us to repent and follow Him.

To say that asking someone in an LBGTQ lifestyle to repent of their sins and turn to Christ is, in some way, homophobic, is the same as saying asking someone to stop being an alcoholic is dipsophobic (fear of alcohol). The endorsement of such statement by Fr. Martin once again emphasizes the intent of Martin to ignore the severity of homosexuality as sin and try and put a pretty bow on it. Tutu, and Martin simply by endorsing the statement, argue that to say LGBTQ is sinful is to be homophobic. It simply does not add up with the definition of sin, what Jesus says about sin, and the Biblical teachings of sin. 

"Do not practice homosexuality, having sex with another man as with a woman. It is a detestable sin."- Leviticus 18:22

"If a man practices homosexuality, having sex with another man as with a woman, both men have committed a detestable act. They must both be put to death, for they are guilty of a capital offense."- LEviticus 20:13

"Don't you realize that those who do wrong will not inherit the Kingdom of God? Don't fool yourselves. Those who indulge in sexual sin, or who worship idols, or commit adultery, or are male prostitutes, or practice homosexuality, or are thieves, or greedy people, or drunkards, or are abusive, or cheat peoplenone of these will inherit the Kingdom of God. Some of you were once like that. But you were cleansed; you were made holy; you were made right with God by calling on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God"- I Corinthians 6:9-11

Tutu goes even further to say he would rather basically go to hell (although interestingly he feels comfortable in his statement calling God homophobic but isn’t comfortable saying the word ‘hell’) if heaven did not tolerate homosexuality and LGBTQ. What kind of heaven would it be if God allowed sin to run free? What kind of God would we be serving if God says those in a state of mortal sin cannot enter heaven and will be condemned except for LGBTQ individuals?

We can love individuals regardless of their sin and we should love them. However, if we truly love them, we would urge them to repent so they could enjoy eternal life with Jesus.

Let’s stop trying to ignore sin, sugar coat it, or make it permissible because regardless of what society does with LGBTQ rights or actions, God will not be moved and God’s view on sin, homosexuality, and LGBTQ lifestyles and actions have never changed and will not.

God is not homophobic and to say such a statement is nothing but heresy.